India. AB InBev appoints Pedro Aidar as its Business Unit India president

Aidar has been with maker of Budweiser and Corona beer for over 15 years and previously held the position of vice president - finance for APAC region based out of Shanghai, after which he moved to India last year.

World's largest brewing company Anheuser-Busch InBev has appointed Pedro Aidar as the president for business unit that includes India and other south Asian countries. The development follows the Belgian-Brazilian beverage giant's acquisition of SABMiller Plc with proposed plans to restructure management team and make key appointments for the combined group globally.

Aidar has been with maker of Budweiser and Corona beer for over 15 years and previously held the position of vice president - finance for APAC region based out of Shanghai, after which he moved to India last year.

"The combination of SABMiller and AB InBev businesses in India is extremely complementary, resulting in a portfolio of local and global brands spanning the different segments of the local beer market. The beverage industry in India represents a fantastic business opportunity and I am personally very excited about the prospects of our new combined group", Aidar said.

The new business unit India would be headquartered in Bangalore and reporting into Jan Craps, Zone President for Asia Pacific South, based out of Melbourne, Australia.

AB InBev and SABMiller expect to close the $100 billion-plus merger on Oct 10 to create a global beer giant with more than 400 brands and a more than a quarter of the world's beer market share.

Within India AB InBev has been a fringe player in the market where leader United Breweries controls about half the beer market with 51% share while SabMiller that sell brands such as Haywards and Knockout has 23% share followed by Carlsberg that controls nearly 15% of the market. Just over a year ago, the company parted ways with its New Delhi-based joint venture partner RJ Corp to operate a wholly owned subsidiary - Crown Beers India.

The Indian operations now have a team of over 325 people with flagship brand Budweiser brewed locally out of two manufacturing locations in Telangana and Maharashtra. The portfolio in India also includes imported international brands such as Stella Artois, Leffe, Corona and Hoegaarden, which are mainly restricted in the premium end beer in a country where mass and strong beer segment dominate nearly 80% of the overall segment.